A Whisper to the Womb
by EternalCullen
Summary: Rose and Dimitri One-shot. Dimitri explains how he and Rose met to his unborn child.


The ownership of all characters related to and involving the novels of _The Vampire Academy_ and _Bloodlines_ Series remain the sole property of Richelle Mead, the Penguin Group and any affiliates.

No copyrights have been infringed on maliciously.

A/N: Wow! Thank you so much everyone for the awesome reviews for _The Temptation of Touch_. I hadn't intended to continue on with it, but as the response has been so positive, it might be something that I look into in the future, but it would be based on later events in _Shadow Kiss_.

In the meanwhile, this is a short FF about Dimitri talking to his unborn child about the day he met Rose. It's just some Romitri quiet time and a follow up to _The Unexpected Expected._

Enjoy!

~ Rose and Dimitri One-shot ~

~ A Whisper to the Womb ~

"I'm going to tell you a story, _moya kroshka_ ," I began, murmuring softly to my unborn child as my lips lightly swept over the swollen belly of my heavily pregnant wife. "It isn't a fairy tale, fable or even folklore, but it did change my life…my entire world in fact, because this story is about the day that I met your mother."

Glancing up at the mother in question as I lay sprawled out across her bare thighs and the tiny pair of lacy black panties almost hidden by her expanding stomach; I kissed my way up Rose's taut lower abdomen until I reached the distended protrusion of her navel, flicking my tongue around the nub as I watched with satisfied eyes as her gaze darkened with arousal.

Lingering with my lips against the skin exposed by the navy blue t-shirt…a t-shirt that had been filched from _my_ side of the walk-in closet and was now tucked up beneath her swollen breasts, I felt Rose tangle her fingers through my hair and her nails scratch lightly over my scalp.

Resting comfortably back against the headboard and propped up high by a mound of pillows in the middle of our bed, Rose smiled down at me as she tugged gently on the strands of hair wound around her finger.

"Another story, comrade? You do realise that whilst our daughter can recognize the sound of our voices by this stage, the actual words have no meaning, right? You could be explaining to her that I'm a homicidal maniac and she would still love me."

"Aren't you most times?" I teased her lightly as I grinned against her belly. "It certainly feels like it, especially since you fell pregnant."

Incredibly difficult to outmanoeuvre _before_ she had fallen pregnant, the mercurial mood-swings that now seemed to go hand in hand with the influx of hormones from the pregnancy made Rose almost impossible to predict. To be fair, she _had_ warned me that she was going to be more difficult than usual to deal with and that I would probably divorce her before she delivered, but it hadn't concerned me at the time.

"Ha ha ha. Very funny, Dimitri," Rose retorted dryly. "You're the one that insisted on children, remember? I was quite happy to coast along with just the two of us, experiencing the occasional mood swing and need to kill the odd pain-in-the-ass royal, but that wasn't good enough for you, was it? No, you had to add kids to the mix."

Smirking at her sarcasm, I shook my head at her perverse statement. "Yes, I was the one that pushed for it, but I gave you more than enough time to back out of, Roza, so don't act like I'm the only one that wanted this. Besides, secretly, I think you love being pregnant."

Cocking a brow in response, Rose looked down at herself with an incredulous expression.

"I can barely walk from one end of the room to the other without being out of breath and when I do it can't even be classified as walking; it's waddling. I have to pee every two-and-a-half-seconds, I haven't seen my feet in so long I'm not sure I'll recognize them when I do and you think I love being pregnant?! You're out of your mind, comrade."

For the most part, Rose had taken the pregnancy and its myriad of complications into her stride. Thankfully, she hadn't been hit by the same weakening morning sickness that poor Lissa had suffered from when pregnant with Charlotte and for that, I had been eternally grateful, but there had been other side-affects that had hampered her later in the pregnancy.

There had been obvious restrictions as to what she could do once pregnant, and we had both known that, but it was a sacrifice Rose had been prepared to make once we had decided to try and conceive.

She had groaned and grumbled about the weight gain, new wardrobe, lack of sleep and the various aching body parts and had good-naturedly told me that this was going to be an only child, but halfway through her third trimester, things had changed.

Her body had rebelled against her, her moodiness had increased and her attitude towards the bliss of motherhood had soured considerably. Not one to relinquish control any more than I did, I knew the last few months had been hard on her and now wasn't so sure that the only child joke was still only a joke.

"I know, _moye serdtse_ , but it's almost over." I comforted her gently, almost crooning as I rubbed over her hips and lower back. At almost thirty-four weeks, the physicality of pregnancy was taking its toll on a body that had been the epitome of lean and toned before.

With her hair pulled back and away from her face in a low bun caught at the nape of her neck, her cheekbones; not as prominent as before the pregnancy, still added to the exotic allure of her. Faint smudges beneath her eyes from countless hours of discomfort and the inability to sleep should have made her appear wearisome and drained, but they couldn't diffuse the spark of life…of goodness, hope and strength.

She had never looked more beautiful to me.

"Yeah? It better be." Shifting against the enormous continental pillow, Rose groaned quietly as she manoeuvred her body into a more comfortable position.

"What have I always admired the most about you, Roza?" I reminded her as I traced light circles over her belly. "Your strength – not only physically, but mentally and emotionally and even if that fails, which I know it never would, you have me to lean on."

"You might have done all the work so far, but we're in this together. We always have been. I know what you've sacrificed for this…for _me_ , because it was what _I_ wanted, and I never want you to forget how grateful I am for you…and for our child."

Tilting her head as a rare smile; one of serene contentment, filled her beautiful face and chased away the discomfort, Rose slide the palm of her right hand over my cheek, cupping it as I turned my lips to kiss her.

"I know that. I'm sorry that I've been such an unholy terror the last few weeks…but it's your fault really; you knew what I was like when you married me and I did warn you what I would be like once the hormones kicked in."

"I did," I agreed against the soft skin of her palm as I nipped it gently. "And I told you then, as I had told you before and I will tell you again now – I've always been prepared for it because you're worth it…you're worth everything to me, Roza. You always have been. I love you."

"I love you too, Dimitri. Thank you for putting up with me."

Nodding as I felt the enormity of my love for her threaten to overwhelm me, I turned my attention back to our daughter.

Stroking the pads of my fingers lightly from one hipbone to the other as they traced over the intertwined initials tattooed above her right hipbone, I searched for the movement of tiny feet or hands as they stretched and pushed against the confinement of the protective layers of skin, waiting until I knew I would be heard before I continued.

As if knowing I was seeking it, a foot; no longer than the length of my thumb, pushed up against the stretchable skin to the left of Rose's bellybutton. It wasn't enough of a kick to create any real discomfort for Rose, but it was enough of a signal to know that I had the attention of the room.

Running the tip of my nose against the movement that now seemed more impatient than before as the kicking became stronger and more agitated, I laughed softly as Rose patted her stomach just above my head as a way of pacifying our child.

"I think you have a captive audience, comrade. Your daughter is listening to you, so why don't you tell her your version the story and I'll add in anything that you forget."

Propping myself up on my elbow, I crossed my dangling feet at the ankles and rested most of my weight on my upper torso as I continued to play with the inquisitive foot. " _Forget_? You think I'm going to leave anything out? That day is branded into my memory, Roza. Trust me; I'm never going to forget any part of it."

Stroking the pad of my index finger down the tiny length of the outlined foot, I smiled tenderly at my daughter.

"Mommy doesn't think I'm going to get the story straight, little one, but really what she wants is any opportunity to correct or argue with me, because that's just the way she is. You'll learn that soon enough I'm afraid, but I can promise you one thing for certain…it won't stop you from loving her any more than it stopped me."

Feeling Rose's nimble fingers flick sharply against my ear in what was a very clear warning at my teasing; I grinned up at her as she shook her head at me and griped. "I'm already on bed rest until the baby is born, Dimitri. Do you really think antagonizing me is the smartest thing to do right now?"

Frowning at the reminder, I returned Rose's scowl, only mine was far more ferocious than hers could ever be.

"The reason you're on bed rest, Rose, is because you refused to slow down, despite being over eight months pregnant." I reminded her tersely. "Dr Yates warned that she would confine you if you didn't listen to her advice about going on maternity leave…a month ago!"

During Rose's appointment with her obstetrician last week, the two had gone head-to-head over her refusal to listen to sound medical advice. Insisting that she would continue in her duties until the day she delivered and that no one would tell her otherwise, Rose had walked out.

Normally, that would have signalled the end of the conversation, but when her blood pressure had dropped dangerously low two days later, she had been admitted and ordered to bed…not by the doctor, who she still wouldn't listen to, but by Lissa and I.

She could argue against one of us, but not against both of us.

"I'm going to be off active-duty for the better part of a year, Dimitri," Rose argued as she defended her actions. "Probably more. I need to know before that, that I've done everything I can."

"No one expects that of you, Roza," I reminded her gently as I saw her concern and dismissed my own annoyance at her stubbornness. "There isn't a single person in our world; moroi, dhampir or otherwise, who would think less of you for taking care of yourself first. You know that. You don't have anything to prove…to anyone."

Her devotion to the guardianship of our Queen, Vasilisa Dragomir; her best friend, had always been unflinchingly dedicated. From the very first moment I had seen them together, it had never wavered, not even when she had chosen to follow me to Siberia during the darkest period of our relationship.

Choosing to relinquish that loyalty and responsibility in order to bear my child had been a weighty decision for Rose to make. One she had happily embraced once deciding, but still one that went against everything she had been taught and believed it. She hated that she was taking herself out of the guardian equation for any amount of time.

" _I_ expect it from me," Rose stressed, running her fingers down my cheek as her thumb brushed lightly against my bottom lip. "Once the baby is born, I don't want to be torn between guilt because I feel like I'm neglecting Lissa to be with our daughter or neglecting our daughter because I want to be with Lissa. I need to know that I'm doing the best I can by both of them. Does that make sense?"

Capturing her thumb gently between my teeth, I sucked on the flesh lightly before answering, enjoying the way her pupils dilated with excitement at the provocative touch.

"Yes, of course it makes sense that you want to honour both of them and I understand your fears, _moye serdtse_ , really I do. I only want you to stop and think about your own health in all of this. No one knows better than I that you're strong, but you need to be careful too. You've always been your harshest critic."

Squeezing her fingers gently, I held her hand to my jaw as her fingers played against my unshaved cheek. Lissa had insisted that I be placed on leave with Rose…mainly to make sure she stayed in bed and followed orders, so shaving didn't seem an important factor to consider.

"The invasion of our personal life…the testing, examinations, monitoring and questioning has been stressful on you and you've still never learnt where to draw the line between sacrifice and self-preservation. It's not just you that _I_ stand to lose, Roza!"

"I know that I need to be careful and slow down, Dimitri, but it's easier said than done." Rose soothed as she heard the fear in my voice and spread the fingers of her free hand over her belly. "I promise you that I'm not about to risk this little one for anything."

A sudden look of defensive ferocity subtly altered her features as an unpleasant thought crossed her mind. "When she's born, I don't want any of them near her. Promise me that you'll keep them away, Dimitri. I don't know what shape I'm going to be in after giving birth and I need to know that you'll protect her if I can't."

"I will," I swore with equalled fervency knowing she was referring to the moroi doctors and medical staff eagerly awaiting the birth of our daughter…the first of her kind, to them at least. "They won't get anywhere near her – I'll make sure of that."

When our world had first learnt of Rose's pregnancy almost two months after we had revealed it to those closest to us…to those that we trusted absolutely, the uproar had been overwhelming.

With the true parentage of little Declan Ivashkov still kept a secret by those that Adrian and Sydney had chosen to trust, the certain knowledge that two Dhampir had conceived a child together; something that before then, had been thought of as impossible due to a genetic glitch, was met with outrage, scepticism and scathing personal attacks on Rose.

We had expected that the reaction would be inflammatory and had been prepared to deal with it in order to start our family, but the backlash had been more than either of us had been prepared for.

None had believed that I was the father and had accused Rose of taking a moroi or human lover and trying to pass of their child as mine.

Incensed by the suggestion, I had refused to allow any of the moroi physicians or geneticists suddenly clamouring to draw vials of her blood or scan every inch of her body, anywhere near her. Lissa had expressed the same sense of outrage at the slandering of her best friend and had all but ordered them to be removed from the Royal Court.

Having the backing of the Queen had somewhat diluted the contentious issue, but there had still been those who had dared to risk the wrath of not only myself but their Monarch in their quest to discover the truth…unfortunately for them, all they had discovered was my quietly murderous father-in-law.

Our families has been told prior to the public revelation and as Abe so often did, had predicted that the news of his daughter's pregnancy would act as a match to a powder keg.

Having pre-arranged with all those who already knew that we would make the announcement, he had flown in as support…or intimidation, depending on which way you looked at it. Either way, he had come in handy.

Both violently protective of Rose, we had kept most at arm's length until they could be organised in a group and the events leading up to the pregnancy had been explained.

Careful to not reveal that we had more hope to believe in than most, we had eventually placed the blame on the phenomenon both of us had been touched by in different ways: Lissa's spirit magic.

There was still so much that was unknown about spirit that it was the only plausible explanation…and what they eventually brought: hook, line and sinker.

Abe, once he was certain that his daughter was safe (and after threatening his fair share of people, I was certain) had eventually flown back to the Turkey, but both he and my mother-in-law; the legendary, although now retired guardian, Janine Hathaway-Mazur had flown in two days ago to be here for the birth of their first grandchild.

My mother, Olena as well as my elder sister, Karolina and youngest sister, Viktoria had travelled from Baia a week ago to welcome the newest edition to the Belikov family. Sonya, the various nieces and nephews as well as my aging grandmother, Yeva had remained in Siberia and would miss out on the event, but we would eventually have to travel to Russia with our daughter.

It was not only the immediate members of my family, but the dhampir community at large that would want to meet her.

Comforted by my passionate reassurance and her complete faith in my abilities, Rose nodded and breathed a sigh of relief. "I know you won't…in fact, God help anyone that tries to get past you."

Rubbing her tummy, Rose smiled down at her child. "Daddy is a badass, baby...and Russian. You're not going to be able to date until you're at least thirty because he's going to petrify any boy that gets within a mile of you."

Groaning at the thought, I rested my forehead against the movements beneath the skin that intensified every time our daughter heard her mother's voice.

When we had first found out that the baby was a girl, I had been ecstatic. Rose had been almost resigned to it, as it knowing already that it would be. When she had told me of her pregnancy, she had been adamantly opposed to a girl as it would undoubtedly be a duplicate copy of herself, but I knew that she no longer felt that way.

Resettling my chin on Rose's stomach, I directed my next words downwards to our safely ensconced daughter as I continued the story that had been interrupted. "For me, the moment that I met your mother was significant for a number of reasons."

"You see, my precious little girl, your father had been tasked with finding the missing Dragomir Princess, your future godmother as it turns out and her runaway dhampir cohort, Rose Hathaway, my future wife as it turns out."

"Your mother and aunt Lissa had run away from St Vladimir's academy two years earlier and had managed to evade any attempts at bringing them back. I was sent to Montana as an instructor and when I learnt about this, I immediately took it upon myself to find the Princess."

"So for a year, I investigated every lead, rumour or sighting I could until I was certain that I had finally tracked them down to student housing in a local university campus in Portland, Oregon. During the early hours of a morning in late Fall, we surrounded and spooked them into making a run. Cornering them in an alleyway, with a small number of guardians –"

" _Small number_?" Rose interrupted as she chocked on her laughter and mocked me. "There were eleven of you armed to the teeth sent to find two teenage girls, comrade. What exactly were you expecting to find?"

"Not you, that was for sure. Now be quiet please," I chastised softly as Rose continued to snigger beneath her breath. "I approached very calmly and attempted to reassure that I was not going to hurt them, but unfortunately, your mother wasn't in the mood to listen to me."

"She listened," Rose protested as she interrupted me again, ignoring my earlier request to remain silent. "But what your father is failing to take into account, is that it was guardians we were running away from in the first place, so seeing him coming at us looking like a walking brick wall, wasn't going to be much of a reassurance."

"Yet knowing that I was a walking brick wall didn't stop you from running straight into me, now did it, Roza?" I countered wryly, remembering her attack as though it had just happened. It had been a stupid move…brave, but stupid and the first time I had stopped to take real notice of the girl I would eventually fall in love with.

"Of course not," she replied archly. "All I knew was that you were trying to take us back to a place that we had spent two years running _away_ from and I wasn't about to sit back meekly and accept it."

Pulling out her tongue at me over the taunt, I hide my smile and continued. "Your mother was weak, you see from blood loss because she was helping aunt Lissa. She had also been away from any serious training for two years, was surrounded by guardians with far more experience and was already at a disadvantage, but that didn't stop her."

"She growled at me to stay away from her friend, but when I kept advancing, she attacked me. It was then that I realised I was dealing with far more than met the eye. You see your mother, as you will soon discover, is beautiful, but not just in the conventional sense. She struck me as being deadly, committed and loyal and for one so young, it surprised me…and I wasn't accustomed to being surprised."

"Hmmm," Rose chipped in again. "What your father is actually trying to say, is that he found mommy really, really hot, but he was just too stubborn to admit it."

"Are you going to keep interrupting?

"Yes, but you knew that already. You've already told our child to expect it."

Chuckling, I pushed on before I lost my train of thought. "Instantly captivated by the determination of this young girl, I tried to talk to her once we had boarded the academy jet. She intrigued me, you see, but she was so furious – both by being found and by how easily I had defeated her –"

"It wasn't that easy, Dimitri!"

"It was actually. Now shush, please. Your mother wouldn't talk to me at all, except to tell me that the reason she had defended the Princess even whilst knowing she was outnumbered, was because she was Lissa's guardian. Her reply was odd, as she was obviously not, but the passionate commitment I could see burning behind her dark eyes told me she took this very seriously."

"I couldn't stop thinking about her answer…or her and it unsettled me. Arriving back at the academy, I wanted to talk to her again, but at the first opportunity provided, _she_ approached _me_ and the first words out of her mouth were an insult."

"They were not!" Rose objected, swiping playfully at my head as I reared back out of her reach and laughed.

"They were actually. It was the first time you called me 'comrade'. Later of course I realised it was more an endearment than a slur, but at the time all it did was irritate me…which you knew of course and used to your advantage."

"Okay, fine, she conceded grumpily as she beckoned me forward with her fingers. "So my intentions _were_ to get under your skin. I'll admit that. Are you satisfied?"

Rolling upwards, I braced myself on my straightened arms on either side her waist, leaning forward for a kiss. "Yes, very, very satisfied. And you accomplished your mission…you _did_ get under my skin from the very first moment we met."

"Mmmm." Cupping my face, Rose teased me with just a flick of her tongue against my lips before she pushed me away. "Sorry, comrade. Bed rest means no sex."

"Sex doesn't always have to mean sex, Roza," I reasoned charmingly. "We've found creative ways around it before, remember?"

"Yes," she answered sweetly but not in a way that made me think she was going to give in. "But as you were the one insisting with Yates and Lissa that I put my feet up and rest, my legs are staying together. Continue, please."

Flopping back onto the bed, I groaned as I again resumed my position over her legs. "Once in the headmistress's office, I thought my end of the deal was complete. I had retrieved the runaways and now everything would again resume as it had before I left to find them."

"The only change was that I would have another novice to instruct and my official guardianship of the Princess would start, but fate it seems, has a way of intervening when you least expect it."

"I knew from reading your mother's file and from the general discussion amongst the other guardians, that she had a problem with… _authority_. I didn't realise just how much until I saw her going almost toe-to-toe with headmistress Kirova."

"The head of St. Vladimir's you understand, had very little empathy for your mother and knew that with missing two years, it would be pointless for her to remain at the academy as she could never catch up quickly enough to graduate."

"She suggested instead, that she should be expelled for what she saw as recklessly endangering Lissa by taking her away from the school."

"I stepped in immediately, though at the time, my defence of her surprised me. I asked for leniency as I hated to see a waste of such raw potential…or at least, that was the excuse I used, but I knew deep down that there was something else there."

"Headmistress Kirova then used my defence of your mother to her advantage, almost forcing me to take her on as my student as she believed that I would refuse and your mother would be removed…something that neither your mother nor I wanted, but for different reasons and as a result of that, she then insulted me for the second time within an hour."

"What?" Rose spluttered loudly, so loudly that her daughter kicked her far harder than before. Wincing as I rubbed over the bruised spot, she asked. "How did I insult you again?"

"By calling me, and I quote, 'cheap foreign labour.'"

"Oh, God," Rose muttered as laughter suffused her voice; her hands covered her face in sudden embarrassment – not something she often felt. "I did, didn't I? That was awful of me, Dimitri. I'm sorry. I was just so angry with you and her and everything else."

Kissing her belly again, I smiled as I enjoyed her contrition, comforting her first before I continued on with my tale. "I know, and I forgave you a long time ago, Roza, so don't let it worry you."

"So reluctantly, I agreed to mentor your mother. She probably doesn't realise it, but trying to keep her in line was more difficult than I could have ever imagined. She was rebellious, unruly, impulsive and uncontrollable and gave me _nothing_ but trouble from the moment we met, but meet we did and now you know how."

"And yet," Rose breathed as she first looked at our unborn child and then to me with an expression of pure happiness. "You still managed to fall in love with me within a few weeks."

"Hmmm. I didn't really seem to have much of a choice there, did I? Resisting you was a challenge all in its own – one that I can now admit, I failed spectacularly at."

Sitting up, I moved to recline on the bed next to her. Sitting back against the headboard, I slow inclined my head until our foreheads rested against each other.

"Are you sorry that you did?" Rose asked as she softly kissed me. "Fall in love with me, I mean?"

Looking over her and the child she would soon give birth to…my family; the family I might never have had if not for her, I shook my head slowly, whispering against her lips as I wrapped my arms around them both.

"Never."


End file.
